Hashtags and tag dashboards: social media at TGS

November 7, 2013

Before embarking on last month’s eight-day trip of northern India, Media Specialist and newMedia Lab teacher Lindsay Clark provided students with the hashtag #TGSNIN and encouraged them to “tag” their photos, videos, and writing with it throughout the journey. Many students keenly got on board and proceeded to post pictures marked with the hashtag on their favorite social networks. For the users of websites and mobile apps like Facebook and Twitter, the hashtag is an invaluable tool that allows for increased exposure and a concentrated focus on any number of topics.

Beyond posting their media on third party social media sites, students also share their items on our own social learning environment, THINK Spot; this is accomplished through the use of “tag dashboards”. Tag dashboards provide an organized way to consolidate an array of related items from multiple users – like photos, videos, bookmarks, and files – onto one page. During our recent term in the United States, we traveled from our home base in Boston to both Washington D.C. and New York City, and you can see examples of these tag dashboards in use by clicking either city’s name.

After our students have had further time to refine their thoughts on Northern India into a proper reflection, they will begin sharing them alongside the media which already appears on the #TGSNIN tag dashboard. By the end of the term, we look forward to this dashboard evolving into a complex and insightful tapestry of reflective thought, which can be revisited and shared well after our time in India comes to an end. A new tag dashboard has also begun regarding this week’s tea-themed weXplore expedition to Kerala, which can be found here.

Enjoy podcasts? Episode 12 of our podcast “THINK Out Loud” features students Emma, Hudson, Gillian, and Cameron L. engaging in a teatime roundtable regarding their North India trip. You can find it on our podcast page and iTunes.

Share story:

Ready to embark on the educational journey of a lifetime?

A passion for travel. A strong academic record. And the desire to improve the world as you experience it. If this sounds like you, you just might be our ideal candidate! Start your application with a five-minute inquiry form - you never know where you might end up.

Ready to embark on the educational journey of a lifetime?

A passion for travel. A strong academic record. And the desire to improve the world as you experience it. If this sounds like you, you just might be our ideal candidate! Start your application with a five-minute inquiry form - you never know where you might end up.